


Welcome to New Republic City

by tempetepapillon



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Mass Effect Trilogy, Sherlock (TV), The 100 (TV), Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, LGBTIQ, M/M, Multi, One Shot, One Shot Collection, Other, Real Life, Straight Ally, Work Contains Fan(s) or Fandom(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-27
Updated: 2017-07-15
Packaged: 2018-11-19 17:29:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11318211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tempetepapillon/pseuds/tempetepapillon
Summary: What if the LGBTIQ fanfic community was a rural town, where all it's members, readers and artist/authors alike are citizens?Please note: I'm a straight cis male. I will therefor most likely get stuff about the community wrong. A lot. Please be assured that this is out of ignorance I'm trying to cure and not because of malicious intent. I hope those of you that know better than me will help correct any mistake I make.I DON'T KNOW ANY OF THE AUTHORS PORTRAYED HERE PERSONALLY. ANYTHING I WRITE HERE IS MY OWN RESPONSIBILITY AND DOES NOT IN ANYWAY REFLECT ON THEM. I RESERVE THEM THE ETERNAL RIGHT TO DEMAND EDITING OR DELETING ANY PART OF THIS THAT MENTIONS THEM OR THEIR WORK AND I WILL COMPLY WITHOUT ARGUMENT OR DISCUSSION IMMEDIATELY.





	1. The Board of Tourism and Commerce Welcomes You to New Republic City

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RaeDMagdon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaeDMagdon/gifts).



> For months I saw [Rae D. Magdon](http://archiveofourown.org/users/RaeDMagdon/works) give kind and wise advice on tumblr to any that needed it and sent her a polite ask despite her busy schedule. Be they gay, bi, straight, cis, trans or anything in between or beyond.
> 
> I imagined her as the world wise and kind doctor in a small rural town. From there the premise of this little meta one-shot grew. I hope all of you understand this as what I meant it to be. An open letter of admiration to the LGBTIQ community and it's key players as well as my formal declaration of alliance.
> 
> Visit Rae's [profile](http://archiveofourown.org/users/RaeDMagdon/works) or her [tumblr](http://raedmagdon.tumblr.com/) if you enjoy extremely excellently written fics about "lady-loving ladies" with emotional depth and super awesome queer smut. Especially on her tumblr you will find all the references you need for the full Rae experience.

# Welcome to New Republic City

 

## A Publication by the Board of Tourism and Commerce

 

 

### So, you are thinking of moving here?

 

 

„Welcome to New Republic City!“

“I thought it was New London?”

“Yes… well… that was last week, but we had to kick the Cumberbitches of the town planning committee (name selection sub-committee). The town’s name got changed rather quickly after that.”

“What? Why?”

“It was kinda hard to find our way around the place with every street called Baker…”

“Ah…

Cumberbitches?”

“Sherlock fan girls.”

“Ah.

 _snigger_ …bitches”

“Really mature!”

 

* * *

 

_Welcome to New Republic City!_

_A place of freedom and acceptance! Of love and tolerance!_

_Visit our quaint main street, filled with many independent vendors…_

 

* * *

 

“Fresh femlash and slash! Fresh femlash and slash! New every day!”

“Only today! Special offer: Two Clexa fanart for the price of one! HD digital prints available. Choose your own level of steaminess!”

“EXTRA! EXTRA! Read all about it! Tonight open discussion at the town hall. Tali’Zorah vs Asami Sato! Who’s the better engineer and who got the prettier ass?”

 

* * *

 

_Why not have a peek in our public library. It houses the largest collection of LGBTIQ fiction and fanfition in the known universe._

 

* * *

 

“Welcome to the New Republic City Public Library. Do you have your card?”

“I don’t have one yet. Sorry.”

“Not a problem. Just fill these out and you can get started right away. Do you prefer ma’am as a form of address?”

“That would be kind, Thank you.”

“Not kind. A matter of course.”

“Thank you all the same. Eeeehm… where is the…?”

“The NSFW section is located in the west wing, up those stairs on the right, straight ahead.”

“Thank you.”

“…well located in is an understatement… it IS the west wing.”

“ehm…”

“And the east wing of course!”

“Oh…”

“We recently expanded into the basement, too.”

 _Blush_ “Thanks again.”

 

* * *

 

_Feel safe and secure thanks to the hard work of Chief Muttsley of our own NRCPD and his trusted officers! If you are in need of assistance you can always seek help at the NRCPD precinct at Haught Avenue, corner of Waverly Boulevard_

 

* * *

 

“Hey! That’s my purse!”

“STOP! In the name of the law!”

_shing_

_zipp_

_plonk_

“Ow! Oh maaaaaan…”

“Chief? Isn’t it against regulation to use a steel cable to catch muggers?”

“I’M A METALBENDER!!”

 

* * *

 

_Find peace in the church of Our Lady Liara and Her Holy Shephard. Conveniently located right at the town centre._

 

* * *

 

“Please, Saint Korra and Saint Asami, bless and protect this child, born into our world to loving parents, christened here in the light of our Lady and her Shephard. Grant them save and happy passage through life and a place inside this community as well as outside of it. Let them be assured of their place here and our love, whatever their path may be. Amen.”

“Amen.”

_sniffle_

_hiccup_

“wuuuueeeeeeeehhh!!”

“Well, someone needs a new diaper.”

“Michelle!! Honestly! Read the mood here”

“Yes dear.”

“…”

_snigger_

 

* * *

 

_New Republic City prides herself in our excellent medical care. Visit Dr. Magdon M.D. at our towns prestigious Katara Medical Centre, Wanheda Street, corner of Avatar Avenue. Doc Rae always has an open ear and a wise word._

 

* * *

 

“Hello Doc.”

“Hey! Come in, come in. How is that crush of yours going?”

“Same old… I’m so deep in the friend-zone it might as well be a friend-continent.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Though I still think you can find your way out. I know her and however her feelings develop, you two should be fine. But take all the time you need.”

“Thanks Doc.”

“Soooo… What can I do for you?”

“Apart from my bum knee? I need your advice, doc.”

_snigger_

“…bum.”

“Doc!”

“Sorry, sorry. Well hop on the bench over here, roll up your pant leg and tell me what’s the trouble.”

“Well… I was at Princess Alexandria’s Pub last night and saw this woman I distantly know flirting super aggressively with another woman. I did not overhear all the details of it, but my acquaintance seemed very intent on trying to get the other woman to ‘try out being gay’ even though she said she’s straight.”

“Mmhh…”

“I really thought about stepping in, but isn’t that kind of inappropriate and condescending? Since I’m… you know… straight? And a guy?”

“I see what you mean, but I think it’s totally appropriate to comment as an ally. You’re right that queer women should normally police our own, but this specific situation doesn’t seem too much like interfering to me, considering the details. You’re not speaking over queer women trying to make a statement. You’re trying to politely defuse a tense situation. Especially if you know the one of them.

I think it would have been best to take your friend to the side and something like: ‘It made me personally uncomfortable that you keet pressuring this girl into admitting an attraction to you even after she said no. It seemed manipulative to me, like what straight guys do to lesbians. If she realizes and admits an attraction to you, she will do it on her own.’

Think of it as an issue of consent and respect regardless of the genders of the partners involved.”

“Oh. Ok. Thank you Doctor.”

“Now now, stop looking like you failed the queer ally test. Next time you know better. Just stay polite, keep your comments as private as you can and don’t try to police people you don’t know unless there is no other choice.”

“Yes Doc.”

“Smartass. Now… You got sprain here. I will prescribe you something for the pain. Try to stay off your knee for a while. I will tape it too. And no Quidditch for two weeks a t least!”

“But I’m a beater!! They neeeeed me!”

“Listen to my orders you dork!”

“…”

“What was that?”

“Yes Doctor Chackwas.”

“Smartass! Be Gone!”


	2. Welcome to New Republic City - Board of Tourism Guide part 0.5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The NRC Board of Tourism and Commerce has graciously added some more information. For our convenience this separate little addendum is aimed more towards a visitor to this remarkable city and not a new resident.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This short little chapter concerns itself more with us visitors to NRC i.e. straight allies. Thank you for letting us visit.
> 
> I'm very blessed that I got permission from noted Headmaster of fandoms and ridiculously talented animator Leigh Lahav to mention her and her work here. Please note she counts herself as a straight ally like me, only 100 billion times cooler. And better looking of course :)
> 
>  
> 
> PLEASE NOTE FURTHER: 
> 
> The passage right at the beginning is a slightly edited transcript/'novelization' of one of Leigh's animations, so none if it belongs to me in any way! It starts after the first horizontal line and ends just above the next. Consider checking her out on tumblr and youtube under onlyleigh if you enjoy funny and really well made animations about fangirls and fandoms, Disney princesses in jail and time-traveling dvd rental store employees.
> 
>  
> 
> One last thing:
> 
> I'm still experimenting with different writing styles and formats. I have some longer fic ideas for the future, but those are all in the early to medium planning stages and the styles I use here wont work with those. At all. So till then I think I can practice a bit here :)

# Wellcome to ~~Ankh-Morporke~~ NRC, Citie of One Thousand Surprises

 

 

## Soe you're a Barbaeriean Invader?

 

 

### A Short Addendum to the NRC Board of Tourism and Commerce Leaflet

 

 

_The NRC Board of Tourism and Commerce is proud to present a series of talks and discussions concerning fandom in the modern era. Presiding will be noted headmaster of fandoms Leigh Lahav, currently on tour through local fangirl chapters all over the continent.  
_

* * *

 

 

You join a diverse crowd of girls at the NRC Expo Centre. It is time for Fan Expo and this time as a special treat Leigh Lahav, Grand Headmaster of Fangirls will be presiding.

"Order! Order!  Settle down, Girls... Ok awesome." The Headmaster stands in front of excitedly murmuring crowd. A red fès sits upon her tousled bob. Her outfits is completed by a white dress shirt with a red bow tie under a brown jacket.

"Welcome to the bimonthly fan girl update meeting. We have some new faces here today. Hi, Hannibal girls!" In the corner you see the new girls. You are greeted by a blonde, adorned with antlers, and a brunette with a shirt in blood speckle design, grinning and waving "Good to have you here. Now for today's order of business. First up, Sherlock girls. Any news?"

Like the rest of the room you turn to a tall girl in a dark coat with a blue scarf. "Well, Benedict Cumberbatch finally lifted that pesky restraining order against us. No one told us about his hounds, though"

"Worth iiiiit", sings the shorter curly haired girl. She is suspiciously covered in bandages.

The Headmaster nods approvingly. "Good work. Inform the Star Trek girls at once. Firefly girls! What's new?"

"Nothing..." At the corner table you spot another pair of girls, one pale and blonde, the other black with long hair, lounging dejectedly in their chairs. Her phone vibrates suddenly "Wait wait wait wait wait, nope. Nothing"

"Hang in there." You admire the easy, supportive smile the Headmaster give the girls. It fades into surprise as she is handed a piece of paper "What's this? Hmm. 'Dear girls, due to some changes in my life, and declining state of the franchise, I'm leaving my role as head of the Harry Potter fan girls." Shocked whispers fill the room. "As you know, I got married last month, and have a kid on the way. Quite simply- A life. You should think about getting one, too. XOXO, Becky.

 

"Oh, how unfortunate." The Headmaster raises hand to her mouth in quiet dismay.

Understandably the representatives of the Harry Potter girls react frantic. You have a hard time not joining them.

"WHAT!?"

"Is that going to happen to us too?!"

"Why did she have to be so mean?"

"Girls, calm down." The Headmaster tries to interject, but can't talk over the Marvel girls

"Does this happen to every fandom? We only got like 6 or 7 more movies to go!"

"That's plenty! We're running out of books!" And you can sympathize. The Tolkien girls have it rougher in comparison.

"Girls!" Once more The Headmaster tries to restore order. Her voice rings with authority, but it is not enough to calm the Star Trek girls, who are starting to go into hysterics: "Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god."

"I'M BURDENED WITH GLORIOUS SORROW." You wish you were close enough to console the girl in Loki's helmet, sobbing till her black eyeliner is running.

"Quiet! QUIET!" Finally The Headmaster can regain control over the meeting, by banging her gavel "Look. It's true that Becky left us. And she's not the first one. But that doesn't mean it's gonna happen to us. We are fan girls! And that's so much more than just coursing endlessly through tumblr, looking for leaked photos of your favourite actors, or waiting 30 hours in the comi-con convention hall for your show's panel and peeing into a plastic bag to save your seat. It's a way of life. It defines us.

"And that doesn't change if your fandom kind of died out", she looks around with a supporting smile, her gaze landing on the Dr. Horrible Girls- "or nobody likes it but you." and on the lone Smallville girl at the far end of the room. "And even if you do have a kid."

 

"Yeah! Star Trek was just rebooted. Who knows what's next?" You are relieved the Star trek girls are calming down again, looking at each other with still unsure smiles.

"Exactly. We should be happy about new opportunities, sequels, or ever NEW fandoms." The Headmaster seems happy to see her assurances take root. "To be a fangirl, is to have hope."

"Yeah. Yeah!" The Harry Potter girls agree with relieved smiles. Crisis averted. You join the others in applauding The Headmaster's leadership. The room is once again filled with happy murmurs.

 

The Headmaster knows how to shift the mood like the seasoned leader of girls she is: "Plus Becky's fanfics were fucking terrible."

"I know, right?"

"Totally." The room agrees. And all is well again.

 

* * *

 

_No matter how long you plan to stay, as a visitor you can never go wrong with choosing the Eden Prime Inn. Located on the western outskirts of town with a marvelous vies of the surrounding woods._

 

* * *

 

Husband and wife are in NRC on vacation. They are frequent visitors to the town, known faces by now and are greeted by name by some of the vendors on main street.

"You know...", the wife says, limbs stretched out on the sinfully comfortable bed in their favourite B&B, the Eden Prime Inn. "We should move here."

"What? Why?" He is surprised. It seems like a bad idea uprooting their life right now.

"You love it here. You have a permanent library pass, season tickets to the quidditch and we are here every time we got more than two days off! So why not simply move here?"

"Honey..."

"No! Listen. We could really do it. I mean I was looking for a change anyway..."

"Honey..."

"And I heard their publishing house is hiring."

"Babe."

"And you can pretty much work anywhere!"

"Hun. Listen. We can't."

"Why the hell not?" He can tell she is starting to get angry. She hates it if her ideas are dismissed and rightfully so. But this is different.

"This is their place."

"What?"

"Their place! The world is full of spaces that are unsafe for them. It is not right, but it is the truth. Here they are safe. And they are safe in the knowledge that they all share at the very least this one thing in common. They are all members of this community. This place was built on the wish to support one another independent of others. Pride and Strength. In capitals. They are fighting for the right to live here, simply by living here! We can't... infiltrate this. They are so kind and open and let us partake in so many of their accomplishments, but this is theirs alone at the end of the day. And at the very least till there are no more unsafe spaces in the world left this has to remain theirs. Most likely even beyond that time. And the only thing we can do is support."

She looks dejected. "But you are bi yourself!"

"No, I'm not."

"What about... THAT folder on you laptop?"

"Honey... liking the occasional pictures and stories of girls with dicks or boys so feminine they might as well be flat women does not a bisexual make. That just means I got a taste for kink that may be a little exotic..." He's chuckling now, drawing her into a warm embrace.

"..."

_sigh_

"You are right..." She's smiling again. A little shy.

"Meh... it was bound to happen at some point. Don't worry. I don't think I can manage that too often to shock you."

punch

"Ow!"

"Smartass." She smirks. And here too, all is well again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not really happy with that 2nd person pov, but I shall leave it for now. A Rewrite may has to happen in the future.
> 
>  
> 
> As you might have guessed, this chapter is dedicated to Leigh Lahav.
> 
> It is further dedicated to those awesome community members that allow us straight folk to visit and partake in the fruit of their creativity. You did not need to share your world, but do it anyway, even though some people do not want to share theirs with you. Thank you for enriching our lives.


	3. NRC - Radio City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some residents of NRC gather around the radio to listen to night talk with all time favourite DJ Teacup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok... this is a bit embarrassing... my original plan was to cast the amazing [TeacupAudio](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvuGkzSg_ujhH5oTOLxN4TQ) for a bit of background dressing, since I was too shy to assume she would agree to more. But when I asked her, she was so kind and sweet and lovely in her answer (which came super quick btw.) I threw all plans out the window. 
> 
> So... Now we have the full chapter dedicated to another straight ally. Teacup is "An aspiring voice actress, here to bring you ASMR Girlfriend Roleplay audios and other such merriments." She has an utterly enthralling voice and judging from her original scripts, she is an amazingly creative writer. Unlike many people, who joined the recent ASMR hype, Teacup relies on audio only, forgoing eye-catching visuals and click-bait.  
> You wont find aimless rambles to keep the uploading schedule or poorly made noise compilations in the wane hope to induce tingles on any of her platforms. All of her role plays are fully scripted, well acted and professionally recorded little stories on varying themes, from fluff to serious, from straight, to gender neutral, to bi/lesbian.  
> I personally would love to hear her work as a voice artist both professionally and for fan fiction. I could imagine nothing cooler than Teacup narrating some of my favourite fics.
> 
> And she can do the most adorable welsh accent I ever heard.
> 
> So please consider looking up TeacupAudio on [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvuGkzSg_ujhH5oTOLxN4TQ), [tumblr](https://teacupaudio.tumblr.com/), [twitter](https://twitter.com/teacupaudio?lang=en) or if you want some of her steamier work look her up on [soundcloud](https://soundcloud.com/teacup-270960027).

# NRC - Radio City

 

 

It was, in a stunning display of cliché, a dark and stormy night in New Republic City. A group of friends, two couples and two singles, had met earlier for a cosy girls night in.

 

"Guys... not that I'm not loving this, but isn't the whole thing soooo 1930's?"

"You mean the gathering-around-the-wireless theme we got going here?"

"Indeed."

"Stop it Karen! You are not Teal'c! No matter how brown you are... or how many crisps you plaster to your forehead!"

Karen's eyes went wide at this in feigned outrage. "That's racist!"

The others sniggered, delighting in the easy atmosphere.

"Oooooh, the banter!"

"Anyway..." said Michelle. "Must you call it 'the wireless'? How about the radio? I think I may be getting serious nostalgia overload."

"Not yet you don't!" said Maya to her lover, bouncing out of her seat to hurry into the kitchen only to return moments later. "But now you might!" In a flutter of cosy pyjamas and deep brown curls she presented the girls her prize.

"Uuuuuuh. Old-Fashioneds. Now you're talking, luv!"

Michelle took this as her cue to flop dramatically across Jean's and Katie's laps. "Urgh... so... much... nostalgia. Feel... old. Quick you two, tell me how pretty and young I am!"

The two singles of this group of long-time friends used their best spooky monotone to say: “You are very young and pretty. Oh, how very pretty you are.”

It was obviously hard for Michelle to keep up her fake look of nostalgia induced exhaustion and join the others in helpless giggles. “You guys suck. And are annoying with your perfect synchroni-…se..si..cition..?”

“Synchronicity?” asked Rachel with a raised eyebrow. She had been quiet so far but this was too much for the English teacher to bear. She had to hide her grin in Karen’s hair.

“Yes! That, too!” exclaimed Michelle. As she drew breath to answer futher, her phone started to buzz, rattling along the surface of the couch table. “Oh. Oh. Oh. It’s starting! Quick turn the radio on.”

“Wireless!”

“Shut up, Maya! Rache, do the thing!”

Rolling her eyes Rachel turned on the radio. The room filled with classic jazz, which almost immediately started to fade out. The dulcet tones of the region’s most popular DJ sounded over the last notes of Duke Ellington’s _‘Don't Mean A Thing’_ :

 

 

 

> _“Good evening my lovelies. Welcome to NightWash. Your weekly late night talk show only here, on TNTO-Radio. My Name is Teacup and I shall be once more your mistress of ceremonies._
> 
> _“Tonight we are joined by Oscar Fry, professor of contemporary cultural development at the Samantha Traynor College in New Republic City. Good evening”_
> 
> _“Good evening, Miss Cup.”_
> 
> _“Tell me, professor, you joined the faculty at STC only relatively recently, is that correct?”_
> 
> _“Indeed it is. My husband Alan and I moved here just three months ago. We were lucky enough to both find very good positions in New Republic.”_
> 
> _“Your husband is a doctor, if I’m not mistaken.”_
> 
> _“That’s right._ _He’s the head of_ _paediatric surgery at_ _Katara Medical Centre.“_
> 
> _“Wow! That’s prestigious position. Tell me are there any more overachievers in you immediate family?”_
> 
> _“Well… our dog was scarily easy to housetrain.”_
> 
> _“Hahahaha. Excellent. Now…You wrote a new book.”_
> 
> _“Ah it’s time for my sales-pitch I see.”_
> 
> _“I doubt it would need much of a pitch. I found it fascinating. Dear listeners the book I have here is called ‘A Tsunami of Hate – The Cascades of Negative Emotion in Modern Media Followers.’ Tell us a bit about it, please.”_
> 
> _"Of course. With pleasure. In my book I analysed a phenomenon I called ‘negativity cascades’. We find this most often among fans of recent pop culture, i.e. movies, shows, books, etc. My theory is that even though genuine enthusiasm for a topic, let’s say a… a graphic novel for example, has gained a lot of acceptance over the last few years, it is still viewed as a form of weakness among many. Paired with the fact that our western society has become more cynic, we come increasingly often across entertainment formants that are extremely harshly judged.”_
> 
> _“Like The New Ghostbusters Movie or Mass Effect - Andromeda?”_
> 
> _“Exactly! Now… personally I did not like the Ghostbuster movie very much, but the amount of negative press it received was nothing compared to the literal storm of hate that swept across the internet. We see this most often among beloved franchises. Because even though humans love a hero, we love to see a hero fall even more. That’s why scandals or so popular. So if the makers of a popular franchise makes a mistake, it becomes suddenly cool to hate something that you always loved. This is exasperated by the fact that we love to see someone angry, since it is a strong emotion and we as humans respond to those. So critics who rant in anger are far more popular, therefor others try to emulate them, and a cascade happens.”_
> 
> _“Wow. Ok… My favourite was chapter six ‘The Indoctrination Theory’”_
> 
> _“Ah yes…”_
> 
> _“For those of you that have not heard of it, this refers to the fan theory that during the events of popular video game Mass Effect 3 or even the whole trilogy, the player character was controlled by the main antagonist, a machine race called The Reapers, who want to eradicate all higher organic life in the galaxy.”_
> 
> _“Yes. The Indoctrination Theory is an interesting case. It is part of fan movement that, following the controversial ending of Mass Effect 3 tried to justify their love for the game instead of turning it into hate. They strove to find an interpretation that they could live with. Something beyond bad directing, writing and game design. Regardless whether you believe the theory or you don’t, I find the premise a positive one. This may be a form of counter-cascade. A swell of constructive criticism”_
> 
> _“Yet in your book you conclude the theory itself is problematic.”_
> 
> _“Yes I do. While I applaud in principal how the fans reacted here, I find the theory itself rather troubling. You see by the time the events of Mass Effect 3 starts Commander Shephard, the character you play, has seen a lot of terrible things. They have experienced enormous pressure throughout the series, killed an uncountable amount of sentient life forms and were exposed to a ridiculous amount of trauma without any form of counselling we are shown in the game. Now BioWare made the brave choice to show Shephard broken, conflicted, sometimes despaired during the last instalment. Shephard, the protagonist in an action video game about shooting stuff and romancing attractive aliens, is very, very obviously a PTSD sufferer. It shows us that heroic acts have consequences for the hero. That even if they make it through a conflict without injury, they still sacrifice._
> 
> _“What troubles me very much, is that the classic PTSD symptoms, which BioWare has Shephard exhibit - disturbing thoughts, feelings, or dreams related to the events, mental or physical distress to trauma-related cues, alterations in how a person thinks and feels, and an increase in the fight-or-flight response – are just written off by some fans as signs of Indoctrination.”_
> 
> _“So in your opinion, professor, the Indoctrination Theory undermines the good work that the developers did to show a believable hero, who sacrificed so much and is now suffering the consequences even while continuing to fight?”_
> 
> _“Exactly.”_
> 
> _“Thank you professor. We will be right back after a bit of music…”_
> 
>  

Michelle leaned back into Maya with a heavy sigh. For a few minutes nobody spoke.

“You know what we need now guys?” asked Karen.

“Replay Mass Effect 3?” said Michelle.

“No you doofus! A backyard bonfire!”

“Oh wow! Great idea. I get the brazier ready!” Michelle sprung up once more filled with energy. “Meet you outside.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TNTO stands for The Next Town Over, since I was lazy at that time. It’s where all us straight folk live :)
> 
> welp... this will be the last chapter with a straight ally for a little while. I want this thing to be about LGTBQI+ and not really about us, but Leigh and Teacup responded so fast to my queries their chapters started to burn in my head.
> 
> Speaking of burning... The next chapter is nearly done. It just need a little polish in the dialogue region and some help from the next star of the chapter.  
> After that 4th chapter I will mark this done for now for two reasons: 
> 
> 1\. I need to find some more community members interested and willing to appear here, so I will be jumping about the net and shyly contact some of you guys, as soon as I can assemble the courage. No idea how long that will take. If you are interested feel free to contact me on tumblr (same penname as A3O) or here. I will custom built any appearance or mention to the wishes of the author in question, from letting them write their own part, to just mention their name in passing or the background.
> 
> 2\. I have two ideas for korrasami one shots that exists already in early draft stages. One shall be a Modern AU and one will further explore bending and the implication of certain techniques. I want to develop those first. After that I have some ideas for a Mass Effect Au I really like, but since that would be a full length fic I'm still hesitant to start it, but I want to try to get at least more concrete in my planning for that one,
> 
> See you soon space cowboys/girls and everything in between and beyond.


	4. Fire: It’s hot!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s true… Fire: it burns stuff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today we are featuring Mel of LoganTheAnimal (both href="http://archiveofourown.org/users/LoganTheAnimal/pseuds/LoganTheAnimal">heretumblrFlashover

"Engine One, Rescue One, channel three," the speaker crackled a life, gaining the instant attention of everyone in the station. "Out-of-control yard fire, dwelling jeopardized, 285 Clark Drive.  Engine One, Rescue One, channel three."

Captain Melissa "Mel" Logan of New Republic City Fire Department knew better than to start yelling orders. She knew her crew and trusted in their training, so she concentrated on slipping out of her shoes and into her bunker boots and the heavy turnouts. Her movements were quick but unhurried, as she grabbed her helmet and jumped in to cap of the fire engine. Hurry bred mistakes.

87 seconds later the gate was completely open and engine one drove into the night followed by rescue one.

Clark Drive was not all that far, but still far enough for the usual excitement before a fire call to build up a little. Mel pushed it aside and concentrated on the MTC.

“Ok guys, you heard dispatch. We have a yard fire jeopardizing a dwelling. So expect backyard bonfire with panicky kids. Anyone ever been in the neighbourhood?”

“Me, Cap,” said Charles, the crew’s engineer. “I have an aunt who lives the next street over. It’s basically all two-story semis with a wide driveway, from where we can access the backyard. My aunt has just a narrow gate in the way.”

“Good.” Mel nodded. “Rookie you set up the supply,” she said to Billy, the crew’s booter, “while Greg readies the attack, then you join him. I don’t think we’ll need more than one, Charlie, but be prepared anyway. A night like this you never know.”

Yard fires were in some ways easier to deal with than house fires. It was far less likely to include trapped civilians and there was no roof that could collapse onto her men. Flashovers would not develop and dangerous gases would be less concentrated if they even occurred. On the other hand flying sparks could carry the fire far quicker to neighbouring tress or buildings. And it was a windy night.

She consulted the GPS image of their destination. “Radio the rescue they won’t need to turn around. We are coming from the north and the south exit of Clark feeds into Lexa Ave. Quickest route to Kat-Med in case we need it.” Kat-Med was their shorthand for Katara Medical Centre.

“You got it, Boss,” said Greg and turned to the radio to relay her orders.

 

* * *

 

 

A few minutes later they arrived. The rescue was quick to position itself for fast take-off, while the rest of Mel’s men readied the equipment. They could easily see the tell-tale orange glow from behind the house, the smell and sound was unmistakeable moist burning wood. In front of the nice semi stood six young women all scared, but none looked injured apart from one who was cradling her hand. Mel waved at John and Jim, who hurried over from the rescue to take care of her first.

As soon as she was within speaking distance one of the women stepped forward and started to babble, her voice edged with slight hysteria.

“Thank God you are here! We just had a small bonfire out back and then there was a pop and the wind… and and and Katie burned her hand and…”

“Calm down, ma’am. I need you to concentrate for a moment. Can you do that?”

“Yes,” the girl sniffed. “I think so.”

“Good. I’m Captain Logan. What you name?” said Mel purposefully pitching her voice slightly lower to calm the girl down.

“Michelle,” she answered, voice still quivering slightly.

“First of all, Michelle, are there any other persons in the house?”

“No that’s all of us.”

“Any pets. In the house or the yard?” Mel needed to be sure the house did not need searching in case the fire spread to it.

“No, no. I got no pets.”

“Are any of your neighbours at home?” She wanted to know. Michelle looked around, momentarily distracted by the sirens of the arriving NRCPD patrol cars but caught herself again.

“No I don’t think so. Ted and Frank are on vacation and I saw the Jensons leave earlier.”

“Good, good. Now I need you to step over here to the ambulance. The EMTs will check you over. Please stay behind the ambulance at all times, ok? Your friends, too”

“Ok.”

By the time Mel was done talking to the now slightly calmer civvie, her crew had secured an entry point into the yard and had the attack line ready. She signalled go-head to Greg and Billy to proceed and turned to Charlie.

“If the boys got the attack good to go, go ahead with the water when they radio.” Once the engineer gave his affirmative, Mel grabbed a chemical extinguisher from the truck and followed her men into the backyard, coat closed and visor down.

As Mel entered the yard, Greg and Billy already had the line on a burning tree, the fire losing more and more of its power. She knew those two would take care of it, so she concentrated on assessing the situation more fully.

A few meters ahead was an ornate brazier, tipped on its side spilling a small pile smouldering logs onto the grass. The house had suffered no visible damage, so Mel felt she had all the information needed to inform dispatch.

"Engine One to alarm.“

„Engine One, Go ahead.“

„We have a minor grass fire, extension to a tree, no damage to the structure. Cancel Engine 3 and the BC, we can handle."

“10-4 Engine One. Cancelling Engine 3 and the BC.”

She clipped her mic back to her shoulder strap and quickly dosed the remains of bonfire with the chemical. That done she inspected the outside of the house more closely for flying sparks, while keeping one eye on Greg and Billy. It took them about a quarter of an hour till Mel could order Charlie to cut the water and a further 40 minutes till overhaul was done and they had checked for hidden fires and felled the burned out tree so it could not fall on anyone.

By the time clean-up started the crew of the rescue seemed to have finished their check-up since John started helping putting equipment away. With most of the work done, Mel undid her coat and walked over to police sergeant in charge of the perimeter.

“Evening sarge,” she said grinning.

“How you doin’, Captain.”

“Good enough. Aren’t six cars a bit much for a small backyard fire?”

“Oh well… you know us,” the sergeant smirked. “Hard to resist some ‘hot action’”

Mel did not resist the urge to roll her eyes. Hard. “One of these days I’m gonna report you to IA, so they throw your blue ass into pun prison.”

“Hardy-Har. You know you love it,” he said, still grinning like a schoolboy. “You finished already?”

“Yeah… fire went out quick enough and we are done with the aftercare. They boys are just cleaning up a bit.” Mel cast her gaze around looking for any issues that needed addressing. Since she found none she continued: “When my guys are done loading up you can open up the perimeter as far as we are concerned.”

The Sergeant nodded. “I agree. Crowd’s quiet and this is still the good part of town. Not like there is anything to loot except a yard full of charcoal. We’ll finish up when you are done.”

“Alright. I’m off to talk to the kids. See ya ‘round, sarge.”

“You too Cap. Have a good one.”

Mel continued down the street to the ambulance throwing a wave over her shoulder to the sergeant and nodding to his men on the way. The small group of young women were huddled together next to the rescue. Two shared a blanket each and some neighbour must have given them mugs of tea.

She approached them with purpose. Strictly speaking what she was about to do was not part of her remit for this evening, but it was important to her, so she would do it. And it was not like the department did not encourage it.

“Well ladies,” she said looking from one girl to the next. ”What happened here exactly?”

What followed was more or less exactly the tale of careless behaviour liberally sprinkled with gross ignorance of basic fire safety.

Mel sighed deeply. “So let me get this straight… You decided to make a little fire in your backyard. Ok, nothing wrong with that per se. BUT. You seriously started your fire in a brassier, which is basically a metal basket where wind can blow at the wood from every angle. Including below?”

“Yes ma’am,” Michelle murmured, the girl seemed to have been elected as spokesperson for the group.

“Then you put the whole thing right in the middle of your yard, where the wind could get at it most freely?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“And you did all of that on an evening with seriously strong winds? You know? The winds the weather channel kept warning the public about the whole day?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“And when you saw the sparks fly you did not stop and think that this could get a tiny bit dangerous?”

“With the rain earlier we thought it would be too wet for anything else to catch fire,” Michelle replied mulishly.

“That is never a really safe assumption to make. The tree had a large hollow. Most likely sparks flew in there and ignited some of the dry detritus in there. Remember that. Fire is unpredictable.”

The girls all looked rather more embarrassed after that and even the last traces of stubborn defiance drained from Michelle’s face.

“And where was your extinguisher during all of that? Or at least a bucket of water?” The fire fighter made sure to put on her best ‘I’m-deeply-unimpressed-look’, strafing the girls with an artfully crafted stare which conveyed overburdening disappointment.

Michelle shuffled about uncomfortably and once again murmured something. This time so quietly Mel had no chance of understanding.

“What was that?”

“It’s in the basement.”

“In the basement… Brilliant. The place where it takes the longest to get to it and it is farthest away from the most common places you might need it. Well done. And you.” Mel turned to the girl, who’s hand her men had wrapped in bandages, her gaze softening just slightly. “What happened to you?”

The young woman who had introduced herself as Katie cringed a little. “There was this huge gust of wind. And it stirred up a seriously large amount sparks and stuff. And I was super distracted and when I looked down there was this glowing thing on my shoe. So I grabbed it.”

Mel pinched the bridge of her nose… She could hardly believe the girl was serious.

“You just grabbed it?”

“Yes,” Katie answered, her voice small.

“Goddamnit, girl, That’s so far outside of common sense it’s getting ridiculous! It's basic causality. Fire equals hot equals ouch. You don't just grab something that glows unless it's a goddamn glow stick! If something glows it has energy and if something has energy it’s a safe bet to assume it’s not cold!” Mel made sure to glower at the whole group. It was important to her to get this point into their heads. “Heat, fire. Heat...fire. Should we talk about the birds and the bees next?" They quickly shock their heads, faces beet red.

 

She surveyed them and decided it was all she could do tonight.

“Ok ladies,“ she said. “We searched the premises and it is safe to return to your home now. Keep in mind what we talked about next time you even consider setting something alight, ok?” She was greeted with rigorous nodding. “Good. Have a good night then.”

Mel walked toward the truck ready to help get everything ready to get back to the station. As she loaded the carefully rolled up hoses in their compartment, the despondent group of young women trudged past her to their house.

“I knew we should have just replayed Mass Effect,” grumbled the dark skinned girl.

“Shut up, Karen,” the all chorused.

Mel grinned at Charlie who secured the final latch. Their work here was done. Time to go home. To the station.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To keep it authentic Mel was kind enough to look over this chapter. She helped me enormously with technical jargon, fire fighter and medic procedure and slang as well as questions about how fires behave.  
> Thank you very much, Mel!  
> As I said last chapter… this is it for the foreseeable future, but I shall not close this little experiment forever.
> 
> See you soon space cowboys and -girls and everything in between and beyond.

**Author's Note:**

> Dear Rae,
> 
> this is for you as a humble toke of my admiration and thankfulness. I wish you, your husband and all your loved ones only the best, strength for the hard time and as much happiness as you can handle.


End file.
